Eligibility quiz
Was one of your parents an Italian citizen when you were born?
Benefits
Benefits for youBenefits for you
Italian passport and ID
Italian citizens can get an Italian passport and an electronic identity card.
Live in Italy for life
Italian citizens can enter, live in and return to Italy without a visa or residence permit.
Study in Italy
Italian citizens can study in Italy on the same terms as other Italian citizens.
Work in Italy
Italian citizens can work or run a business in Italy without a work permit.
Get help abroad
Italian consulates provide documents and registration services to Italian citizens abroad.
They can also help citizens in difficulty where possible, including with emergencies, legal and health problems, and limited financial help.
Vote in elections
Italian citizens can vote in elections and referendums if they meet the age and voting-register rules.
Citizens living abroad who are registered with AIRE can vote in the overseas constituency for parliamentary elections and national referendums.
Use public healthcare
Italian citizens living in Italy can use the National Health Service through their local health authority.
Care includes family doctors, children's care, medicines, specialists, hospital care and emergency care.
Get family support
Italian citizens may qualify for payments for children, depending on residence, work and tax or social-security conditions.
The amount depends on family circumstances and income.
Maternity benefits depend on the kind of work and other conditions.
How to apply
Applying at a consulateApplying at a consulate
Find your consulate
Find the Italian consulate that serves the area where you live.
Searches DuckDuckGo for “Which Italian consulate serves your city for citizenship by descent?”
Gather your documents
Prepare the required documents for the consulate.
See required documentsDownload the application form
Get the citizenship-by-descent application form from your consulate.
Searches DuckDuckGo for “Where can I get the Italian citizenship by descent application form from the Italian consulate serving your city?”
Fill in the form
Fill in the application form and sign it as your consulate directs.
Searches DuckDuckGo for “How do I fill in the Italian citizenship by descent application form at the Italian consulate serving your city?”
Book an appointment
Create your own Prenot@mi account and book an individual appointment for citizenship by descent. Confirm the appointment if the system asks you to.
Book an appointmentHand in your application
Bring your completed form and required documents to the consulate, and pay the recognition fee as the consulate directs; the adult fee is €600. Some consulates allow you to send the application by mail instead.
Searches DuckDuckGo for “How do I submit an Italian citizenship by descent application and pay the fee at the Italian consulate serving your city?”
Wait for the decision
Wait for the consulate to tell you its decision and respond if it asks for more information or documents. Once your citizenship is recognised, you can apply for an Italian passport.
Searches DuckDuckGo for “How do I follow up on an Italian citizenship by descent application at the Italian consulate serving your city?”
Documents needed
Family certificates and recordsFamily certificates and records
Birth certificates
Get your birth certificate and the birth records of your parent, grandparent and Italian great-grandparent through whom you are claiming citizenship. Ask the Italian town hall where your great-grandparent was born for an extract of their birth record; get official originals of the other records from the offices that registered the births. If you were adopted, add the adoption decision.
Family citizenship records
Get your Italian great-grandparent’s Italian citizenship history and an official record showing whether and when they became a citizen of another country; it must show that they did not do so before their child through whom you are claiming citizenship was born. If no certificate of non-naturalisation is available, ask for equivalent official evidence, such as a negative civil-registry or electoral-list certificate; address every relevant country and name variation, and include official evidence of any later naturalisation, retention or renunciation. Get a certificate from the Italian consular authority or other official evidence that you and your parent, grandparent and great-grandparent did not give up Italian citizenship, and include evidence that your parent or grandparent held only Italian citizenship, including at death if applicable, if you rely on that fact.
Marriage certificates *
Get official marriage records for yourself and for your parent, grandparent and Italian great-grandparent through whom you are claiming citizenship, as applicable. Ask the offices that registered the marriages for the records. If divorce or a name change affects someone’s identity or civil status, add the relevant official records.
* Only if you or a relative through whom you are claiming citizenship married.
May need translationMay need apostille/legalisationDeath certificates *
Get official death records for your parent, grandparent and Italian great-grandparent through whom you are claiming citizenship, as applicable. Ask the offices that registered the deaths for the records.
* Only if a relative through whom you are claiming citizenship has died.
May need translationMay need apostille/legalisationParent’s residence record *
Get your parent’s historical Italian citizenship and residence certificates. The records must show that your parent or adoptive parent lived in Italy for at least two continuous years after acquiring Italian citizenship and before your birth or adoption.
* Only if you rely on your parent’s residence in Italy.
Considerations
Things to think aboutThings to think about
Registration when living abroad
Italian citizens moving abroad for more than 12 months must register with AIRE, Italy's register of citizens living abroad.
Short stays, seasonal work and some other cases are exempt.
Registration matters for consular services, documents and voting from abroad.
Citizenship can be lost
You can lose citizenship for serving a foreign state or holding foreign public office after Italy orders you to stop, or for certain acts during war.
It can also be lost if your adoption is revoked because of your conduct and you have or gain another citizenship.
You can give it up if you have another citizenship and live or move abroad, or in certain cases if you gained it as a child through a parent.
Discuss
Online communitiesOnline communities
Dual U.S.-Italian Citizenship
English Facebook group for people interested in Italian citizenship
Request to joinCiudadania Italiana
Spanish Facebook group for people interested in Italian citizenship
Join on FacebookItalian citizenship by descent (jure sanguinis)
English Facebook group for people interested in Italian citizenship
Request to joinConsultation
Talk to a professionalTalk to a professional
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